


Disney Princess

by KiKi_the_Creator



Category: Open Heart (Visual Novels)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-14
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:08:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27548833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KiKi_the_Creator/pseuds/KiKi_the_Creator
Summary: Aurora had a plan. She’s always had a plan - for chores, for school, for her career. She’s had a plan for everything, every single detail of her future and every single detail of her life, from who she’ll work for to what street she'll live on in ten years. She’s always had a plan, and it never once included Rylen Damen, the hurricane that’s blown into her life and destroyed every single one of those carefully crafted plans.
Relationships: Aurora Emery/Main Character (Open Heart)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 14





	1. Running

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I changed the MC to my main for my OH play through since she's not just a base character now. This is going to be long so I'd rather make her a fully fledged person instead of the basic MC I started this with, when it was only a single ficlet

Aurora Emery is running.

She doesn’t know where she’s going, or why she needs to go there, but she knows she can’t stay where she is. She knows she can’t seek refuge in her aunt’s office, she can’t look for comfort in the other interns, or even the residents and attendings, she can’t distract herself by caring for her patients anymore. She needs to run and hide and forget the world until it gives up and forgets her, too.

She spots a supply closet down the hall and runs straight for it, throwing the door open and shoving it closed. She steps further inside, tears suddenly springing from her eyes as her throat tightens, raw and awful. She drops against the opposite wall to the door, her knees pressing against her chest as she splinters in some random supply closet, alone and ignored by the world.

She shouldn't be surprised at this point, it's not new, it's not strange. This isn't even the first time she's cried inside the walls of Edenbrook, only now it's so much more, now it's unstoppable and debilitating as she cries into her scrubs, her body shaking with each rasping breath and each sob as she just crumbles, falling apart as the rest of the hospital carries on without her, not even sparing a second thought for someone so irrelevant to them.

The door creaks open, Aurora’s eyes flying up to meet a curious gaze, “H-Hey!” she sniffs, wiping her sleeve under her running nose. “ _Get out!_ ” she glares at the figure, even as she’s slumped on the floor beside shelves of toiletries with mascara pouring down the length of her face in dark streams.

“Aurora?” the figure whispers, stepping inside the cramped closet and closing the door as their footsteps draw them closer to a teary Aurora.

“Go on, then. Say it,” she spits through tears, her voice cracking under the weight of her sobs and hurt. Cleaving under the pressure of everything she’s ever wanted to say but held back and fracturing from the size of everything she’s never wanted to say but forced from her throat anyway.

The figure drops before her, setting a stack of charts they were carrying a foot or so away, their eyes surprisingly earnest and concerned as they gaze into Aurora's, “Say… what?” 

Aurora sniffles again, wiping at the tears under her eyes now, “What you and everyone else have always wanted to say!” she accuses harshly. “That I’m only here because of my name! That I don’t deserve my spot!” she chokes on the last words, as if they could physically hurt her to release them, and they almost do.

“Are you okay?” a stupidly kind and soft and concerned voice asks from above her, a hand landing on Aurora’s shoulder and squeezing comfortingly.

She jerks away from the touch, “Do I look like I’m okay? I’m crying in a freaking supply closet!”

“Okay…” The figure sits beside her, staring ahead and nodding absentmindedly, “What happened to make you cry in a closet?”

Aurora scoffs, “Everything,” her voice falling away with the words. “I’m just so goddamn tired,” it comes out as only a whisper, her eyes focusing on her knee as a finger traces a circle on her shin.

“Of what?”

“Everything!” she repeats, fire back inside of her at having to repeat herself. She shouldn't be having this conversation, this entire thing is ridiculous. Why are they even bothering with her? God, this is insane.

“Well, let’s start with one thing," they begin. "What’s been bugging you the most? What made you come in here?”

“My aunt?” she shrugs with a frown, swallowing thickly before speaking again, “I thought she’d lay off while she was busy with your hearing… but she’s pushing me even harder,” she confesses reluctantly, still feeling ridiculous.

“Pushing you? What do you mean?”

She sighs, “I know you all think I have an easy ride here because of her… but you have no idea how much she expects of me.”

“Because of your family name?” the figure turns, looking to Aurora curiously, as if the makeup streaked across her features isn't even there, as if they're having the most casual of conversations, as if they're sitting in the cafeteria discussing movies or something equally trivial.

“Sure, that,” she shrugs. “And also the fact that she hates being an administrator. Sometimes it feels like she’s trying to live through me because she doesn’t get to practice anymore.” Her arms tighten around her legs, chin landing on her knee, “She makes Zaid and Ines set me the most complicated cases, and then she calls me to her office to talk about them for hours and hours.”

“So she gives you the answers?”

“No!” she turns, glaring furiously, “She just grills me until I find them. And then when I finally get a second to myself, away from her or the patients, I get flocked by those… those _leeches,_ ” she grimaces, “It’s like med school all over again.” 

Aurora used to enjoy her classes when she was younger, she loved science in high school and most of her undergrad courses. But that stopped when she reached med school. Itwas awful for her, even if she loved her classes, it wasn't enough, it just became draining, the only escape from everything that dragged her down outside of those halls.

She had no real friends, she had no allies, she had no one to trust. Everyone wanted to partner with her because they thought she was a genius, everyone wanted to impress her or bribe her into letting them meet her aunt, everyone wanted to get close to her just for the career boost. And she hated how easily she used to fall for it, how many people she thought she was genuine, close friends with just for them to abandon her when she couldn’t introduce them to whatever famous doctor they idolized. She hated how alone and broken she always felt as they walked away, as she retreated to her dorm to cry and break down, just like she’s doing right now, after all this time.

Tears well in her eyes again, slowly sliding down her cheeks as they escape and muddy with her mascara, “You have no idea what it’s like knowing that everyone who talks to you or tries to be your friend is just doing it to get in with your family.”

An arm wraps around her back, pulling her into the figure’s side gently, “I had no idea you were having such a hard time. I’m sorry,” the tone is sincere, the words precious as they hit Aurora’s ears.

But she’s not falling for this again, she's not letting someone in just for them to hate her when she's not enough, just to abandon her when she can't give them what they want, just to leave her crying and lonely like everyone else has. “Like you care,” she scoffs, pulling back from the arm around her.

But that arm still stays, lighter now, “I do. I care about you and what you’re going through. I’ve never once cared that you’re an Emery, I care that you’re Aurora, and you could have let me tell you that before. But you were a jerk to me from day one. I wasn’t trying to get in with you because of your name. I didn’t even know who your aunt was, but it wouldn’t have mattered anyway,” the figure tries, a thumb brushing Aurora's side absentmindedly, sending jolts of electricity through her entire body.

“What, did you learn medicine in the woods or something?” Aurora scoffs once more, rolling her eyes as that arm tightens around her back again.

“That’s what Jackie said,” the tone’s lighter, almost humorous as it falls from the figure sitting beside her. Before a breath is sucked in, evaporating the humor and the lightness, “Look, I think you’ve been burned by people using you so much that you’ve stopped giving people the benefit of the doubt. I get it," a shrug, "You don’t want to trust people. But if you never give yourself a chance to be wrong… you’ll never be right either.”

Aurora falls silent, a hand circling her back comfortingly as she stares into the darkness of the supply closet, the shelves of cleaning supplies and toiletries. “You don’t have to be alone, Aurora.”

And then she cracks and crumbles, falling apart at that one word, that stupid, awful word that’s haunted her for years, that left her cold and exhausted of everything, that stabbed her in the heart for even daring to have one. The tears fall faster than before, waterfalls flooding her skin as they drip from her chin and sobs shake her once again, a familiar sensation after all these years of being truly, hopelessly, despairingly _alone._

Arms wrap around her, pulling her against the figure, and as soon as they do, she falls apart even more. She shatters into thousands of pieces knowing that this is the unfamiliar component in this entire ordeal, that something as simple as comfort has eluded her for who knows how long. Something as simple as concern or caring or whatever motivation the person she’s sobbing against has is entirely foreign to her now.

This isn’t how things were supposed to go, this is nowhere near how things were supposed to go. Aurora was supposed to be her own person without her aunt’s shadow, to dominate the other interns and win the spot on the diagnostics team, to prove herself as an amazing doctor, with or without her last name. She was supposed to be level headed and calm, confident and capable, the best of the best. She was supposed to be perfect, to be everything her aunt wasn’t, to be better. And she certainly wasn’t supposed to be crying into the shoulder of one Rylen Damen in a dimly lit supply closet when she should be tending to her patients, helping the people relying on her to tell them what’s wrong, how to fix it.

But she doesn’t even care to fight anymore. She doesn’t care that she’s not enough, that she’s not the best, that she’s still under her aunt’s debilitating shadow. She doesn’t feel like working harder than anyone to prove herself or destroy her competition, doesn’t feel like pushing herself to her breaking point, doesn’t feel like fending for herself anymore as she falls apart beyond repair, not when Rylen's being so… so… so _Rylen._

Which is such a ridiculous thing to think, that someone’s simply being themself, simply behaving as they would any other day, simply doing what comes naturally to them. But that doesn’t change how true it is, how perfect and amazing it is, and how much Aurora never wants it to end, never wants any of this to stop, never wants to walk away from this damned supply closet just to start drowning in everything that drives her mad again. 

She never wants this to end, she never wants Rylen to stop tracing her spine so lightly and comfortingly, she never wants Rylen to stop whispering into her hair with a tone that’s so kind and soft, and she never wants Rylen to stop hugging her _so. Incredibly. Perfectly. Tight._

But of course, she does. She does stop trailing her hand along Aurora’s back in that light and comforting manner, she does stop murmuring reassurances and promises that everything’s okay and fine in that sweet and caring voice, and she does stop hugging Aurora _so. Incredibly. Perfectly. Tight._ She pulls back gently, careful not to shatter the fragile Aurora splitting and fracturing in her arms as she carefully meets her eyes, still so soft and perfect. She cups her cheeks, her palms barely resting on the skin beneath them as heat radiates from her, warming Aurora in the chill of the closet, “You gonna be okay?”

Aurora sniffles, forcing a stiff nod as she carefully lifts her hands from their crumpled position in her lap to wipe away the tears falling down her cheeks. Except Rylen beats her to it, her thumbs wiping away the streams under Aurora’s dark and watery eyes, and it’s so tender and sweet and precious and warm and _perfect_ that Aurora can feel herself splintering again, cracking under the caring, concerned gaze resting on her. She sucks in a shaky breath, willing herself to be strong again, to be able to handle this.

Because she can handle anything and everything, she always has, from med school and her cold and lonely dorm to the judgmental stares and constant, hauntingly empty space beside her as she roams Edenbrook. She’s always handled it, she’s never fallen apart so terribly as much as she is now. She's never fallen apart in someone’s arms in the oddly perfect way she is now. She's never felt so vulnerable and so safe at the same time like she does now, in the fourth floor supply closet, shelves of cleaning supplies and products stacked around her.

“Are you ready to head out? Or do you need another minute?” Her voice is so low, so gentle and unbelievable as it spills from her lips, honey dripping down her chin, golden and flowing as it coats Aurora from head to toe, a warm blanket wrapped around her shoulders.

Aurora averts her gaze, turning to her folded hands in her lap as Rylen's thumbs ghost across her cheeks, a steady, stable rhythm to match her breathing to, “I’m sorry about… this,” she mumbles, insecurity alighting the blanket, turning the fabric to ash along her shoulders. “You shouldn’t have to be here wasting your time.”

Rylen's head dips down, working to catch Aurora’s teary gaze in her own, “Making sure you’re okay isn’t a waste, Aurora,” she hums, low in her throat as her palms slip to Aurora’s jaw, nudging her gaze upwards.

“Yeah, it is,” she rolls her eyes with a frown. “There’s people _dying,_ Rylen,” she meets her eyes, jaw set tight.

“And you’ll be one of them if you don’t take care of yourself and take a break when you need it,” Rylen holds her gaze, serious and stern, pleading for her words to take hold as her hands fall from Aurora's face, a chill replacing their warmth.

“I don’t need a break,” she insists, regardless of what just occurred.

“We’re sitting on the floor of a supply closet and your eyes are red,” Rylen's eyebrows raise, a knowing smile on her face that Aurora wants to wipe off. “You’re allowed to take a minute when you need to, Aurora, I’m serious.”

Aurora frowns, “I’m not about to make a habit of breaking down in closets.”

“Good,” Rylen grins, raising a fist and tapping Aurora’s chin playfully with her knuckles, “Because you’re too talented to waste your energy on being upset.”

Aurora’s eyes roll, her frown only deepening, “Why are you mocking me now? Was seeing me cry not enough?” she accuses coldly, her arms crossing over her chest protectively.

“Aurora,” her tone is serious. “You’re literally a Disney princess, of course you’re amazing.”

Her cheeks flush dark, her eyes desperately darting around to avoid Rylen's, searching for an escape or distraction to quell the heat in her cheeks that really shouldn’t be there. It's a compliment, but a different one from what she's used to. This is absolutely absurd, there is not one discernible reason for her to be blushing or embarrassed or whatever is happening as she coughs awkwardly.

“Now come on,” Rylen jumps to her feet, offering her hands and wiggling her fingers to Aurora teasingly. “You need to forget about this rank closet and go help some people,” she grins that grin that used to make Aurora want to vomit, but for reasons she may never know, now sends an electric jolt through her as it’s directed at her for once.

She takes the hands stretched out to her, gripping the soft and warm palms beneath her own as Rylen jerks her upwards, stopping just a few tiny, tiny inches from that smiling face. She sucks in a sharp breath, taking a step back and putting distance between them, brushing off her coat just to occupy her hands and mind.

Rylen picks up the few charts she dropped when she entered and passes them to Aurora without a word. She crosses to the door, pulling it open and bowing, her arm outstretched as she gestures for Aurora to exit. “Your Highness,” she teases, glancing up to wiggle her eyebrows at an annoyed Aurora.

She rolls her eyes, exiting quickly and making a beeline for the bathroom to clean up, dropping her new charts on the sink as she wipes away her makeup, fixes her hair, and kills a few moments until her eyes look less red. She takes a deep breath, grabs her charts, and heads out to meet her new patients, whoever they may be.

She cycles through them, introducing herself, familiarizing herself with their cases, running tests or receiving results for ones Rylen's already ordered. And on top of that, she has her previous patients to tend to as well, some of which are cases she’s stumped on or waiting to see if her hunch is correct. And all of them are absolutely draining, absolutely exhausting as she stands with a plastered-on smile and cycles through an explanation of a diagnosis or a treatment plan or an invasive test.

She exits another patient room, stopping at a nurses station to receive some results and order another exam, and finally, _finally_ empties her hands of paperwork and charts and results and orders and countless other items that drive her insane. And finally, _finally_ she can stop, can collect her head, can rest and prepare herself for her next shift that consists of the exact same procedures and routines.

She sways, exhaust fogging her mind as she trudges through the halls of Edenbrook towards the on-call room. She’s been staying there as much as she can lately, not wanting to risk encountering her aunt and all of her lectures any more than necessary. She pulls the door open, crosses to the opposite side of the room, and collapses on a bed, staring upwards blankly.

She doesn’t want to move or think or even breathe at this point, she’s too tired and sore, both physically and mentally, as she blinks slowly. But she forces her muscles to work, her arm to take out her phone from her pocket, and her fingers to tap at the screen, setting an alarm and scrolling through notifications. She stops on a text from an unknown number, opening the notification and reading, ‘Good luck.’

Aurora frowns at the light glowing from the screen, the gray text bubble of her correspondent, the monotone, unfeeling dots and lines making up the letters of the message, and especially the name signed at the bottom, beneath those odd words, a name that should not have her number: ‘-Rylen.’

She drops her phone to her side, turning away from it to face the wall, curling up tight and staring into space until her exhaustion begins to wear on her consciousness, a few thoughts swirling as her eyes flutter shut, her folded arm slipping beneath her head as a makeshift pillow as she sinks into the cot beneath her.

Somehow, her thoughts start slowly circling to Rylen, as strange as it is. They’re of that dumb smile she gave Aurora as she held the door to the supply closet open, they’re of the mascara stains on her shirt as she walked down the hallway, they’re of the steadiness in her voice as she stepped into the closet, that steadiness she can draw out of seemingly nowhere.

It was there as she bailed Aurora out to Ramsey, it was there as she led Aurora through her crisis during triage, and it was there as she whispered into Aurora’s hair. It’s always there when it matters, when someone’s career, or health, or wellbeing is at stake. It’s always there when _Aurora_ needs it, even if she didn’t want it or ask for it, even if Rylen had no reason to offer that stability, that olive branch.

Yet she still did. She still met Aurora’s gaze and apologized for something that wasn’t her fault just to save her from the wrath of Doctor Ramsey after experiencing it herself. She still stood across from Aurora, speaking soft and slow, even as Aurora was on the brink of a panic attack, a collapse of her psyche provoked by all the horrors surrounding her, horrors that surrounded Rylen, too. She still stepped into that stupid, cramped closet and pulled Aurora into her arms, her breath hitting against her ear and providing a single constant, the only comfort in that closet as everything hurt and exploded and became too much all at once.

She didn’t mock or hurt her, she didn’t belittle or demean her, she didn’t search for an in with her aunt or a crack in her armour to attack until she bled to death. She just sat there, letting Aurora’s ruined makeup and hot tears stain the fabric of her clothes before leaving Edenbrook for who knows how long, careful not to further shatter the splintered woman that had hit her limit as she shook in her arms.

Aurora turns, grabbing her phone off the cot and unlocking it, opening up that message from Rylen. ‘How’d you get my number?’ she types furiously, staring at it impatiently, waiting for ‘Delivered’ to turn to ‘Read,’ waiting for three dots to appear, waiting for a cohesive response. Her nail taps against the screen, sharp and staccatoed in the dark and empty on-call room, harsh and berating in the dim lighting surrounding Aurora.

‘Your aunt’ pops up after a few minutes, a few minutes that drive Aurora insane, just staring at the light illuminating her face. 

Her eyebrows knit together, ‘Why? And why did she give it to you?’ she types quickly, mildly frustrated with her aunt for being so careless with private information.

‘I wanted to be able to check on my patients, Princess, calm down.’ The answer’s quick, sarcastic and teasing like the ridiculous gesture Rylen made as she exited the supply closet.

Heat rushes to Aurora’s face, her cheeks flushing in the dim lighting, though from anger or embarrassment or both, she can’t tell, but she knows she doesn’t like it one bit. ‘Don’t call me Princess,’ she fires back.

‘Oh, do you prefer Your Highness? I can work with that. Oooooh or Your Majesty! That better?’

Aurora’s lips quirk in the slightest smile at the letters on her screen, but she forces it away. ‘I prefer Aurora, my name,’ she responds. 

‘You’re no fun, Princess.’

She frowns, ‘Aurora*’

‘Princess*’

‘Aurora*’

‘Princess*’

‘Aurora*’

‘Do you not think you’re a princess? Is that what’s happening? Aw, Aurora, are you not confident? Do we need to work on your self-esteem?’

She shakes her head, rolling her eyes, ‘Shut up, Damen. You have my number to discuss patients and that is all,’ she scolds.

‘Sorry, Princess, I’ll be good. How much longer is your shift?’

‘I'm already off. I was trying to sleep before your message distracted me.’

‘Sorry. Good night :)’

Aurora rolls her eyes again, setting her phone back down and settling into the cot beneath her once again, intent on a few hours of sleep before she can make her escape to the apartment, her aunt hopefully long gone by the time she returns and can enjoy the rest of her night. But even as she drifts off, thoughts of Rylen still slip into her mind, thoughts of that ludicrous smiley face and the grin she knows it's meant to represent.


	2. Tired

Aurora Emery is tired.

She’s incredibly tired, of anything and everything. She can barely sleep anymore, she can barely relax, and now she can barely focus on her work. Which is arguably the worst of the three, since this is her livelihood, her passion, her priority. It’s what she’s always excelled at, it’s what she’s poured years and years of her life into, and now she doesn’t even know what she’s reading and has to restart at the top of page 268, for the fourth time now.

But instead of rereading once more, she huffs, slams her textbook shut, and falls back on her bed, staring up at the plain, empty ceiling as if it will solve all her problems for her. Unfortunately, it doesn’t, and that fact only further irritates her. She turns on her side, facing her open window and the lights spilling into the ill-lit room through the glass panes. Lights from the buildings surrounding her own, lights from traffic swimming in the current of the street, lights from neon signs and street lamps lining the sidewalk, lights that provide a tiny glimpse of sunshine in the chilling dark of night.

Her phone buzzes from behind her, shaking the comforter underneath her, and, with a sigh, she tosses her arm backwards and searches for it, her palm fumbling along her comforter as she does. When she finally finds it she grips her case tight as she draws her arm back, and unlocks it to find a notification from Rylen Damen. ‘Hey Princess,’ Aurora rolls her eyes, ‘How’s Jonathon Quell? Did you figure out what was wrong?’

She sighs, pulling her other hand from beneath the weight of her body, and begins typing, ‘It was a bacterial infection. His results arrived this morning and we ran through his treatment plan this afternoon. He should make a full recovery,’ she sends, dropping her phone back to the bed as she does.

But of course, that’s not the end of the conversation; it never is with Rylen. Aurora’s phone vibrates again, and she turns it on to find ‘:DDDDDDDDD’ staring back at her, her mind immediately replicating the obnoxious smile Rylen has when she’s excited.

Her lips twist as she stares at the obscene image, an image she cannot fathom sending to a colleague when discussing patients, an image that she hates she knows it’s actual equivalent to, before she begins typing with another sigh, her curiosity getting the best of her, ‘Not that I’m advocating for this professional conversation to turn at all casual, but why not use emojis?’

‘I dunno,’ pops up almost immediately, ‘Just always used them. Old habits die hard, I guess,’ arrives just as quickly.

‘Okay,’ Aurora types, somewhat eagerly for a change, ‘Now are we done here?’ She taps the side of her phone case - some random black one with red flowers she found at the store she bought the device from - distractedly, waiting for her escape from this horrendous exchange.

Rylen's response is just as fast, a few dots bouncing before grey explodes on the screen, ‘Ouch, Princess, you really don’t like me.’

Aurora rolls her eyes at her screen, frown firmly in place as her fingers fly back to the keyboard, ‘This is a professional interaction, and if we have run out of professional material to discuss, then this conversation has come to an end.’

‘You must be a blast at parties,’ Aurora rolls her eyes again, a seemingly constant urge when around Rylen or even interacting virtually, just as her phone pings again, ‘Sorry, *professional parties*’ she corrects.

And Aurora barely suppresses another eye roll, frowning heavily at her screen, even as her lips fight against her to quirk upwards the tiniest amount, ‘I don’t go to parties.’

‘No kidding.’

Aurora glares at the letters, at the challenge held within them, at the unbridled insult staring her in the face. ‘Do you?’ she retaliates, the faintest droplets of hurt welling somewhere inside herself.

‘Too busy. Why, you asking me out? ;)’

Aurora shakes her head exasperatedly with an exhale from her nose, simultaneously fighting against the growing smile on her lips even harder. She forces it away as soon as she realizes it’s there, her jaw clenching and nostrils flaring in irritation as she decides it’s time to put an end to this absurdity provoked by Rylen, ‘Enjoy your evening, Damen, I have work to do.’

‘Night, Princess,’ buzzes her phone for the last time, a final message to bookend a conversation Aurora would rather not repeat again, but she knows she will. And it’s some odd mix of infuriating and oddly comforting, knowing that even if she tries to shut her up, Rylen will still be there chattering away, coming up with joke after joke, tease after tease, all presumably to force Aurora into smiling or something of the like.

Rylen once asked Aurora if her muscles were incapable of moving like that, of lifting in a smile, and Aurora scowled in response. Rylen put her hands up in self-defense, eyes wide as she explained that she was only curious why Aurora never looked happy, that it was an innocent question. And Aurora’s terse reply had shut her up quite quickly: “If I find something that makes me happy, then I’ll smile.”

Aurora sighs, letting her gaze shift to the blank, unassuming ceiling once again. Her eyelids fall shut as she sucks in a deep breath, steadying herself as best she can, working to dissolve her irritation and annoyance as her chest rises with each calming breath. Then she launches upwards, grabs her textbook, and flips it open to page 268 to continue reading. After what feels like forever, she’s managed through each of the passages she needed to read, and gathers her books and papers to settle them on her desk.

She flops back on her bed after she clears it, staring at the dull, boring ceiling for another quiet moment before scooting up to the pillows and tossing the covers back. She sinks into her pillow, hating how unfamiliar the sensation has become in recent weeks - maybe even months - and grabs her phone to set an alarm. She moves to plug it in on her nightstand, but before she does, she opens her messages again, scrolling to her last conversation for one final text: ‘Night, Damen.’

\---

An alarm blares near Aurora’s head, startling her awake just as sunlight creeps above the horizon outside, glinting through her still-open window and bathing her in yellows and oranges. With a huff, she turns off the blasting noise, suppressing the urge to throw her phone against the wall as she does, and crawls out of bed reluctantly. She retreats to the bathroom for a quick shower and throws on her scrubs when she’s done, just two more steps in the constant routine that’s been her life for years now.

She leaves the apartment without breakfast, she enters Edenbrook without any greetings or warm welcomes, she works her shift without any breaks or breathers. She works until she has nothing to work on, until the nurses are looking at her funny as she orders exam after exam, and until her aunt’s calling her into her office. Only she wishes she could just keep working, keep ignoring her aunt and keep helping people, it’s the entire reason she’s here, anything else is a distraction, a waste.

Another buzz shakes her phone as she exits Harper Emery’s office with a huff, her features twisted in frustration as she shuts the door behind her with a thud. She stalks down the corridor outside, glaring at anyone that dares to look in her direction, interns and residents alike. She stops outside a patient’s room, pulling in a deep, steadying breath as her phone vibrates in her pocket once more.

With a roll of her eyes, she pulls it from her pocket, flicking open to the last person she wants to talk to, but is the least surprised by at this point. ‘What about Cynthia Lane?’ is the first one she sees. ‘Did you figure out Nathan McAllister too?’ is above it.

She rolls her eyes at the messages, at the gall of Rylen to insert herself into hospital affairs from her apartment, miles away. ‘They are in my care for a reason, Damen, I assure you that all your previous patients are fine,’ she types back, tapping her foot as she does.

‘Sorry,’ fires back almost immediately, as if Rylen was waiting on the edge of her seat for some sort of answer. ‘You’ve definitely got this,’ a beat later, with a smiley face tacked on the end, before one last message arrives, ‘Just keep me updated? Please?’

Aurora sighs, tapping her foot and considering a response. But she can’t think of any outside of providing Rylen with her request, so she pockets her phone without sending another message and steps into her patient’s room, forcing a tight smile on her lips. He smiles back, though much more relaxed, and she runs through the usual, familiar, boring routine that’s starting to drag on her day by day, wearing her down quicker than it should. And all the while, she plans out her analysis of this patient for Rylen, focusing her energy on the recent addition.

\---

A day later, Aurora’s flying from room to room, floor to floor, and wing to wing. And she hates it. She hates that she’s running around like a chicken with its head cut off, she hates that she’s the only one working, alone in the stark halls, and she hates that her aunt refused to listen to her earlier, ignoring her words and piling more charts in her arms.

She tugs a door shut behind her, already scanning another chart as she hurries down the hall to the next room. She repeats the process all morning, lines and lines of exams, results, treatments, medical histories, anything and everything fill her mind, imprint on the back of her eyelids, drown her in monotony and the emptiness of Edenbrook today.

Her phone buzzes against her as it rests in her pocket, an annoyingly familiar sensation now. And she doesn’t even have to guess who it’s from; no one else texts her, least of all when she’s in the middle of a shift. She pulls the offending device out with a huff, immediately greeted with ‘Didn’t see you at the hearing.’

Aurora’s jaw clenches, eyes alight as she drops her stack of papers on the nurse’s station she’s found herself at. ‘For your information, I’m working, rather than wasting my time on something so ridiculous. This is a hospital, people need help, and you’re stealing all the decent doctors from them,’ she types furiously, irritated at both her situation and the circumstance the entire hospital has found itself in, all because of Rylen.

She waits for a response but after a minute or so, it’s clear she’s not going to` receive one. She shuts her phone off entirely, jamming it in her back pocket as she carries on, a scowl plastered on her face as she works, and works, and works. She meets with new patients and attendings, she assists old ones, she even discharges two, but the entire time she’s irritated and frustrated and just so tired.

Nearly the entire hospital’s at that hearing, she has every right to be there, too. This impacts every single member of the staff, she has every right to know what could happen to her career. This affects one of her colleagues, she has every right to know what’s going to happen to her, whether or not she’s going to see her in the hallways and put up with that absurd grin that she can call upon in a fraction of a second.

She sighs as she exits another room, flicking through her files and folders and stack of papers, and starts for a nurse’s station, dropping papers off with the few people still working. She forces a smile at Danny as he beams at her, before spinning on her heel and starting for the atrium, gritting her teeth as she marches down a series of hallways. She drags a hand through her hair as she draws near, finding a crowded atrium as she exits into it. She grits her teeth as her aunt spots her, waving her over with a smile.

She obliges, snaking through the gathered groups of doctors and observers until she reaches one Harper Emery. “Aurora, perfect, I was just about to send a page for you,” she greets cheerily.

Aurora forces a minuscule smile back, opening her mouth to respond when Harper cuts her off, “I have new assignments for you, I’m guessing you finished your previous ones?” she inquires with a smile.

“Well, actually,” Aurora begins, shifting on her feet and forcing herself to meet Harper’s gaze, “I was hoping I could come watch the hearing to see the outcome,” she explains.

Harper shakes her head, “No, you should be working,” she answers, rather sternly.

Aurora bristles at the tone, “Everyone else is watching the hearing, why can’t I?” she counters, her lips twisting downwards into a frown.

“Because, Aurora,” Harper begins gently, Aurora only further bristling, “this is the perfect chance for you to pick up some extra cases,” she smiles encouragingly.

“But…”

Harper ignores her quiet protest, “Report to Dr. Alondra, then Dr. Mirrielees.” And Aurora can’t take it. She can’t take being ignored and forced to walk those empty halls when everyone else gets to be a part of something so important, and crucial, and she can’t take that she can’t be there to see what happens to Rylen. Harper’s continued, “Tell them I sent you -”

“God, Aunt Harper, would you just stop?” Aurora explodes, “You don’t listen to me! Ever since I got here, you’ve used me to feel like you’re still practicing.” Her face has contorted into an brazen scowl now as she spits the words.

“That’s… that’s not true,” Harper stammers, staring at Aurora in disbelief and simultaneously attempting to wrangle the surprise on her face.

“No? Tell me how much you love being chief, then,” Aurora challenges, drawing herself to her full height. “Tell me how you don’t miss being a surgeon. How much you love paperwork and kissing up to scumbags like Declan Nash! How much you didn’t care about getting back in the O.R. the other day!”

Harper plasters on her own scowl now, “Aurora, you can’t talk to me this way!”

Aurora only laughs coldly in response. She’s done with the ‘can’t’s and the ‘no’s, she’s done with being her aunt’s lap dog, she’s done with conforming to someone else’s ideals for her. She’s done with this, with all of this. “You know what the hilarious thing is? Damen is exactly who you’ve always wanted me to be and you’re letting Nash railroad her out of a fair hearing.”

Harper doesn’t respond, her face tight as Aurora meets her gaze in challenge. She can feel pressure building behind her eyes, but she’s not giving up, she’s not giving in, she’s not losing this fight like she’s lost countless others. If she has to work herself to exhaustion, alone every step of the way, she’s doing it on her own terms.

Harper only huffs, turning away from Aurora and striding in the direction of the hall that’s held the hearing. Aurora turns too, storming across the atrium with her face set in a glare, firing it at anyone stupid enough to stare at her, to acknowledge the raised voices that came from her and Harper. She sneers at some random intern that still doesn’t get the message, and they quickly avert their eyes.

She turns forward again, and, for the second time today, Aurora catches Rylen's gaze across the room. Only she’s not interested in conversation this time, she’s not interested in wishing Rylen luck as she faces the demise of her career, she’s not interested in even holding her gaze. She’s not interested in anything to do with Rylen Damen, plain and simple. “What?” Aurora snaps at her.

She watches Rylen stutter for a second, her eyes displaying her evident shock at whatever’s just occurred before her, until a grin splits her lips in half a heartbeat, “Thanks for standing up for me.”

Aurora’s frown remains firmly in place as she meets eager eyes, “That wasn’t for you, Damen. That was for me.” She stands taller, flicking her gaze away from Rylen's, “But you’re welcome anyway,” she mumbles awkwardly, her feet already moving again as she retreats from that stupid smile, that smile that seems to be Rylen's default, that smile that was present in the fourth floor supply closet.

She retreats in the direction of the hearing’s hall, slipping inside carefully to remain as unnoticed as possible. She takes a seat, slumping in it in the back corner behind two random interns that won’t stop chattering, even as the hall begins filling up, even as the board retakes their places, even as everyone else within the grand room slowly quiets. It’s become still enough that Aurora can hear what they’re saying now, even as they whisper, “Dude, she _killed_ someone,” one of them insists, “Throw her in jail, she’s fucking crazy.”

Aurora jerks forward in her seat before she can even consider reacting, lips pulled back in a snarl as red sparks in the corners of her vision, “Hey!” she hisses, a low, vicious sound. The interns turn, eyes wide, and Aurora focuses in on the one that uttered something so ridiculous. “You wanna stand up and tell everyone that? Or you gonna keep whispering like a coward?” she hisses again, watching his features slowly morph from surprise to fear as he takes in not only the person speaking to him, but the expression on her face.

His jaw falls open as he glances to his friend, eyes wild and face quickly flushing red. But his friend only leans away, hands raised in surrender as he abandons his friend to the wolves. Or, more accurately, a furious Aurora Emery. He turns back to her, stuttering incessantly, “I, um, so - er - I didn’t - that’s - well - okay - er, I, uh…” he stalls, face paling as Aurora sinks into her seat again.

“Then keep your mouth shut,” she snarls, a slight sense of pride blossoming in her chest at the way the intern adamantly nods his head, turning back to his friend just to get laughed at. She’s about to snap at him too for treating her understandable frustration as something comedic, when Rylen retakes her spot at the podium, the entire hall silencing immediately.

Aurora taps her foot anxiously as she watches Rylen standing at the podium before the gathered group of attendings. She watches the way Rylen stands ram-rod straight, her spine like a ruler and her body rigid as she stares ahead, eyes trained on the people before her, the people judging her. She watches the way Rylen relaxes some as she mentions her friends, turning back to them with a small smile, the words like an activator, alighting something inside her.

She watches the way Rylen uses that fire, her face settling into stone as Dr. Chandra asks her a final question, “Do you regret what you’ve done?”

Her jaw sets as she speaks, clear and determined, her voice ringing in the hall, “I regret distracting us from what matters. This hospital is full of sick people who need our help. But instead we’re in here, debating the consequences of my actions. So if you’re gonna pull my privileges, let’s get it over with. Because all of you need to get back to work,” she accuses, fingers gripping the podium and knuckles turning white.

And Aurora watches the entire speech with a slight smile crooking her lips, some combination of self-satisfaction and pride swirling in her stomach, stirring her, provoking her to shift forward, knees on her elbows as she watches intently. As she watches the vote that determines Rylen's entire future, that might determine Edenbrook’s entire future. “The seven panelists will now vote whether to revoke Dr. Damen's privileges at Edenbrook,” Harper begins, adjusting in her chair and looking down towards the other panelists.

Until the door at the back of the hall swings in, a low voice booming throughout the room, “You weren’t going to start without me, were you?” Dr. Banerji’s cheery tone echoes, stealing every pair of eyes in the room as he enters, an intern Rylen knows - Landry, Aurora corrects - helping him walk down the aisle.

Aurora’s eyes flicker to Rylen, to the shock on her face as her mouth hangs open, the artificial lighting playing in her wide eyes. Rylen blinks, still processing the man before her, “Dr. Banerji?” she whispers, and it’s too far for Aurora to hear, but enough for her to make out the shape of Rylen's lips as she murmurs.

“Sorry for the wait. Once he woke up, I got him here as fast as I could,” Landry announces, still aiding the older man towards the board of gathered panelists, carefully and slowly.

“Naveen, what are you doing here? You said you were retiring,” Harper’s standing now, palms flat on the table as she gapes at Banerji with her own wide eyes.

Dr. Banerji laughs lightly, albeit weakly, “I should have said I was _expiring,_ ” he clarifies with a grin, somehow unafraid in the face of death. “Until yesterday, I was on the verge of death. Sepsis of unknown origin,” he continues.”Unknown, that is, until Dr. Damen gave up her last day to prepare for this hearing by solving my case.” Rylen's cheeks flush as she bows her head, avoiding the eyes settling on her. “Now then, I believe that seat still has my name on it,” Dr. Banerji beams to the board.

Declan Nash jumps to his feet, his face beet-red, “Cyrus! Stop this!” he whisper-shouts in the direction of one of the panelists, earning a panicked expression from the doctor in question.

He fumbles to follow the order just given to him, “That’s, uh, fantastic news, Dr. Banerji, but I’m afraid it’s too late for you to vote. Procedure and all…”

“You never were a good liar, Cyrus,” Banerji tuts disapprovingly, even with his grin still firmly glued to his face. “Now then,” he takes his seat, Landry retreating to the audience, “Given the circumstances of my resurrection, I think we all know what I’m about to say. That’s going to be a ‘nay’ from me.”

Two more ‘nay’s echo Dr. Banerji, until the attention falls on Harper. Her brow furrows as she visibly regards her options, eyes roving across the hall before coming to rest on… Aurora. Aurora meets her gaze, attempting to force the anxiety from her eyes as best she can, still slumped in her seat and tapping her foot, an unstoppable beat that shakes her entire body as it continues and continues and continues, just like Harper’s gaze pinning her to the spot. Just like the nerves squirming inside of her, just like the exhaustion eating away at her.

Declan mutters something to Harper, every feature on his face drawn tight, a snarl splitting his lips as he glares at her, still bright red.

Harper draws in a deep breath, finally removing her eyes from Aurora and settling them on Rylen, Aurora relaxing as her heavy, contemplative gaze leaves her. “Dr. Damen, you’ve proven you’re someone who focuses as much on what a patient wants as what their body needs…” she pauses, Rylen visibly twitching with anxiety at the gap in speech. “But we’re not here to save bodies. We’re here to save lives. I vote nay,” Harper nods, Rylen instantaneously melting on the spot.

Her head bows to the podium, her shoulders rising and falling with deep, steadying breaths as the board continues, three more ‘nay’s sounding and applause beginning to echo at the prompting of Bryce Lahela, another of Rylen's friends, a surgeon. But Rylen doesn’t move, eyes glued to the podium as she grips it, potentially even harder than before, her knuckles pale as they remain clenched.

The room spins into chaos around her, cheers from her friends, a few disappointed murmurings that Aurora may have to stamp out, and the shouts of Declan Nash as he attempts to fight the resolution. It’s mayhem, pandemonium, but the entire time, Rylen stays frozen, a peaceful island escape from the waves of disaster.

When Rylen's head finally shoots up, a brilliant smile is on her lips in a heartbeat as she steps around the podium, nearly skipping as she walks to the board with her hand held out. She stops at every single panelist, shaking their hand and sharing small conversation with them, even the ones that worked for her downfall. By the time she reaches the end of the board, she’s almost bouncing on her feet as she turns back to her friends, rushing over to tackle Sienna Trinh in a hug, lifting her off her feet as she does.

All the while, Aurora’s sitting in the back of the hall, her foot no longer tapping as she shifts her gaze to the floor beneath her feet, observing the light playing off it, reflecting, creating shadows from nothing. That’s all it takes, is one spark, one illumination, one flicker to send the world careening to a stop or to kick it back into action. All it takes is one catalyst, one butterfly effect, for Aurora to sit alone, facing the floor as Rylen celebrates her victory. One tiny domino for her phone to buzz, ‘Looks like you’re stuck with me, Princess.’

It takes a second, but Aurora grins at the letters, at the message. Unabashedly, she grins for what feels like the first time in forever, not caring who sees, not caring what someone will think at Aurora Emery smiling and what that could possibly mean. She even snorts at the next message, the next letters, because she knows the exact beaming smile it’s meant to convey, the smile still sparkling across the room: ‘:DDDDDDDDDDDDDD’


	3. Relieved

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know im shit at updating, but i finally got this done. chapter 4 should be significantly quicker, i swear

Aurora Emery is relieved.

It's strange. Very strange, the way her shoulders feel less tense and the way her thoughts are less clouded as she winds through Edenbrook’s halls, steps light as they lead her to Harper Emery’s office. She adjusts her coat outside the door, smoothing out the lapels delicately before stepping inside. 

Harper’s sorting through papers on her desk, only glancing up as Aurora sits across from her, palms flat on her thighs to quell her nerves. There’s tension lingering in the air, thick as it attempts to weigh down Aurora’s shoulders, attempts to counteract the result of the trial.

The pair sitting across from each other haven’t spoken since the fight in the atrium, the only communication being a brief, agitated text. Aurora’s foot begins tapping beneath the desk, muted by the carpet resting under her feet as the silence drags on and on and on and on.

“What did you need?” Aurora rushes out, her anxiety getting the best of her as her fingers twitch in her lap.

Harper glances up from her paperwork momentarily, meeting Aurora’s gaze, then sits back in her chair, hands folded atop her desk. “I thought it best we discussed what happened earlier,” she answers coolly, the slightest irritation in her expression.

“What’s there to discuss?” Aurora counters, squirming in her seat slightly.

Harper sits up, straight as an arrow, with tense shoulders beneath her coat and fingers knit together, resting on the desk. “If you’re not happy with me, Aurora, I’d like to know how to fix that.”

A sigh sinks Aurora’s own shoulder, sinking her further into her chair, “Aunt Harper -”

“Aurora,” she cuts her off gently, “I never want you to resent me or hate being around me. If that’s starting to happen, I want to correct it and be the best aunt I can be.”

“It’s just -” Aurora’s shoulders slump, any fight dissolving from her. “It’s overwhelming. When you give me as many assignments as you can, just to spend twice the time to keep you updated and involved. It’s exhausting.”

Harper nods along, falling quiet. Her hands find a pen, twirling it, twisting it between idle fingers. She nods again, more resolute this time, “I’ll try to step back some more, give you space.”

“Are you going to go back to practicing?”

She sighs, “Aurora…”

“You’re not happy sitting in this office, I know it,” Aurora frowns across the desk, folding her arms in defiance. “You’re always upset when you get home and take every opportunity to do some real work.”

“This is real work,” Harper frowns right back.

“No, it’s not.”

“Aurora…” she warns, eyes flickering with growing anger. “My career does not concern you.”

“And mine doesn’t concern you, but you’re still involved.”

“Then I’ll stop being involved. We can cut ties entirely, if that’s what you want.”

“That’s not what I said,” Aurora bites out.

Harper sighs, her head falling into the cradle of her hands as a quiet permeates the office, mingling with the leftover irritation. “I think you should move out,” Harper finally says, not moving.

“Why?” Aurora’s asking before she can help herself, surprise widening her eyes and dropping her jaw.

“Being this involved in each other’s lives isn’t working, Aurora,” she gestures uselessly. “I love you, but we’re both adults and don’t need to be getting into petty arguments.”

“So I’m getting kicked out?” Aurora asks indignantly, her expression some odd combination of frustration and betrayal.

“Of course not! Just - Let’s take a step back, okay?” Harper attempts to gesture placatingly, waving her hands down.

Jaw clenched tight, Aurora spits, “ _Fine,_ ” standing quickly and exiting from the office, letting the door fall closed with a thud. A nurse glances up from across the hall, and she barely musters as scowl before hurrying down the corridor. Her hands mess with her coat, adjusting neurotically as she navigates the winding halls. 

She’s not quite sure where she’s headed, just that it has to be far from her aunt’s office and the woman still sitting within it. It has to be far away from the nagging voice in the back of her mind, telling her she just can’t handle this workload, she’s not cut out for it. It has to be far away from the anxiety that sat heavy in her gut in the hearing, an inexplicable bubbling of nerves.

Her feet eventually lead her to a waiting area, where family members and patients awaiting treatment sit, the air heavy. A woman’s sniffling in a corner, a few tears escaping just to be wiped away by the tissue in her hands. A young boy plays with a toy car on the floor, a teenager keeping watch over him a few feet away. A man sits with his hands clasped tightly, knee jerking anxiously with wildly roving eyes. There’s a dozen stories within this room alone, each wrought with upset and grief.

And that’s why she’s here, why she’s dealt with that workload for so long. Why she felt that anxiety tug at her over Edenbrook’s fate. Why she wants and needs the best for herself, her aunt, the staff as a whole. A notification shakes her phone in her pocket, and she tugs it out, finally tearing her eyes away from the stories before her.

It’s from the other source of that anxiety, the person she was dreading seeing go most, purely because Rylen can help these people just as much as she can. ‘I know you’re allergic to fun, but everyone’s heading to Donahue’s tonight. Figured you might wanna come :D’

She frowns down at the message, glancing up at the waiting room one last time before turning down the hall, typing as she goes, ‘Only for the drinks.’ It’s an easy, comfortable quip, one that comes without trying.

Grey dots pop up in a single second, a chime quickly following, ‘Of course. I’d never presume it’d be for me, Princess ;)’

Aurora rolls her eyes at the emoticon, sending out a response as she arrives at a nurse’s station, leaning against it idly. ‘Good.’ Her grip slackens as she stares at it, one finger tapping the side of her case, a slow, steady beat, while her lips twist to the side. ‘And good job, Damen.’

‘Thanks.’ It’s quick as usual, and even without the smiley, Aurora knows it's there, reflected in Rylen’s own device screen.

Now, to survive the last of her shift - headache-inducing patients, stacks of paperwork, gossiping coworkers and all. She straightens up, exhaling deeply and setting her shoulders, teeth gritting in determination. 

\---

Aurora arrives to a bustling bar, attendings and interns alike shouting and drinking, dancing and laughing loudly. A few glance her way as she cautiously steps up to the bar, ordering a beer as quick as she can, but she doesn’t bother with them. Once the bartender moves on, she slips through the thick crowd, finding a small, empty booth in the back corner.

She slumps into it, pulling her phone out just to occupy her time. She taps open the message that’s been waiting for her since she left Harper’s office: ‘I’m sorry if I upset you, but you should be more independent.’

With a huff, her phone slams against the table, and she chugs back her drink, leaving the booth for another. And another. And another.

“You came!” a joyful voice chimes, earning a short glance from Aurora.

Her attention quickly snaps back to where it’s been occupied lately, apartment listings she doesn’t have much interest in. “You always did like stating the obvious,” she grumbles. “You don’t have to check on me, by the way. I’m used to being alone.”

Beer sloshes in its bottle as Rylen slumps into the booth beside her, glancing over Aurora’s shoulder at her screen. “You moving?”

“Yes. And you’re nosy.” She slides away from Rylen, who puts even more space between them. “I’ve been staying at my aunt’s place all year, but we both think it’ll be good to have some space.”

Rylen nods enthusiastically, slouching back against the seat to look out over the bar. Elijah and Bryce are cheering on Sienna and Jackie as they down a row of shots, Sienna’s arms raising in victory when she slams her last glass down. “You know… we have a room opening up,” Rylen’s elbow nudges Aurora, a mischievous light in her eyes as they meet Aurora’s.

Aurora eyes her suspiciously, “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”

“Yeah,” Rylen’s smile somehow seems to grow, glinting as she picks at the label on her beer bottle. “I mean, I have to ask my roommates but… it’s not like we can afford the place on our own.”

Nodding, Aurora turns to her own drink, tapping her nails against the side in contemplation. The faint sound can barely be heard through the bar’s sounds, but it’s enough to focus on, to drown out laughter and music to.

“Think about it,” Rylen’s nudging her again, pulling her back to Donahue’s. She glances up, finding Rylen smiling softly as she stands, gripping her beer loosely in her palm.

Aurora nods, still tapping lightly, “...I will.”

\---

Rylen appears before Aurora’s eyes, collapsing across from her with a thud against the booth’s cushions. “So’ve you thought ‘bout it?” Her arms fold on the tabletop, chin resting on them as she gazes up with bright, shining eyes.

Blinking, Aurora looks up, setting her phone down and eyeing Rylen and her flushed, red cheeks. “About…?”

“Moving in! Duh!” She grins, not a hint of trepidation, of reservation, all teeth and deep smile lines. Her head lolls to the side, cheek pressing into the fabric of her shirt, “So…?”

Aurora sighs, rolling her eyes, “Maybe. I need more than a single night.”

Bottom lip jutting out in a pout, Rylen tries her best to be irresistible, “Boo. You should just say yes.”

“Why do you want me in your apartment anyway?”

“Okay, so,” she sparks to life, jerking upright as energy overflows from her. “One:” she flicks a finger out, leaning over the table. “We need help paying rent. Two: We know you, and strangers are weird. Three: You’re pretty cool and we all like you already.”

“Really? Even Jackie?”

“Well…” Rylen’s voice pitches up as her head bobs in consideration, “She likes the help with rent, but she’ll come around. Swear it.” She draws an ‘x’ over her heart, slumping against the back of the booth.

Aurora only shrugs, picking her phone up again to occupy her hands and mind, “I still haven’t decided.”

Rylen hefts a world-weary sigh, her shoulder rising and dropping dramatically, “ _Fine._ But decide soon or we’ll have to find someone else.”

Aurora nods, attention already returned to her phone and the scrolling of her email inbox. Across from her, Rylen falls quiet, gaze wandering distractedly, seeming to snap onto anything and everything.

Abruptly, her gleaming eyes fall back on Aurora. “Gimme your arm,” her hands reach across the table, keeping their distance but waiting expectantly, palms upright. 

Aurora obliges without thinking, allowing Rylen to carefully take her wrist, pushing her sleeve up her forearm, fingers barely brushing her skin. A shiver ripples down Aurora’s spin before she shakes it away, schooling her expression into distant curiosity, “Why?”

“Just checking you haven’t broken out in hives.” Rylen smiles easily, thumb brushing Aurora’s wrist unconsciously, light enough to send goosebumps breaking in a tidal wave.

“I’m not actually allergic to fun, you know,” Aurora barely manages a glare, her attention continually slipping back to the fingers still tracing random patterns on the inside of her wrist.

“Can never be too careful.” Finally retracting, Rylen’s hands fall to her lap, and despite the heat of the small, crowded bar, Aurora’s skin feels colder for it. Her goosebumps disappear, and she retracts her own arm, fidgeting with her glass.

She avoids Rylen’s eyes, staring into the random cocktail she ordered intently. “Don’t need your concern.”

“Everyone needs my concern.” Rylen doesn’t react to the slight edge in Aurora’s voice, the unspoken warning to keep her distant, like a snake’s rattle, “I have great concern, you’ll see.”

“I’m sure I will,” Aurora’s teeth grit together, grinding ever so slightly.

The corner booth falls silent as Rylen watches her carefully, watches her race the rim of her glass and stare at the colors inside. “...If you really don’t want to be here, you should go.”

“Trying to get rid of me?” Aurora’s dark eyes flicker up, finding an earnestness in Rylen’s she hasn’t seen since that day in the supply closet. It’s not unwelcome either, it’s reassuring as Aurora takes in the crease between her brows.

“Never,” she shakes her head adamantly, “Just don’t want your night to suck.”

“I’m fine,” Aurora shrugs awkwardly, picking at one of her nails. “But thanks.”

“‘Course,” hazel eyes crinkle as Rylen smiles, nearly squinting with the force of it, and Aurora can feel herself relaxing under the full brunt of that smile. The spell breaks as Rylen stands, “I’ll go but lemme know if you need anything,” tapping the table in a short burst before sauntering off.

She joins a group by the bar, throwing her arm around a giggling Sienna’s shoulders as Bryce speaks animatedly, Kyra interjecting periodically. Occasionally their laughter and shouts manage to float over to Aurora’s corner, and every burst of Rylen’s voice draws her eyes.

It’s late when Donahue’s finally starts emptying out, loud clusters of doctors filtering out the front door, most a little uneasy on their feet. One of the interns spilled a drink on another earlier, their raised voices effectively ending the night for most.

Aurora’s nearly slipped out behind a few of the quieter attendings when someone stumbles into her from the side, arms wrapping around her waist as a face is buried in her shoulder. Dark hair tickles her nose as she glances questioningly to the culprit, beaten to the punch by a mumbling against her, “Thanks for coming. Even just for booze,” before she’s released, a flushed, very drunk Rylen leaning against Rafael for support.

He smiles kindly at Aurora before carefully putting his arm around the woman waving to her and leading Eylen away, down the street after their other friends. Tugging her jacket tighter, Aurora turns the opposite direction, scanning the cars for the ride she called thirty minutes prior.

\---

Aurora’s keys jangle as she unlocks her apartment’s front door, dropping them on the nearby tabletop before shrugging out of her jacket, bag still slung over her shoulder. She stretches her back, pops sounding as she stalks further into the apartment with a sigh, head bowed in exhaustion.

“I wasn’t sure you were coming home at all.” Harper’s voice rings from the kitchen, her arms folded on the countertop.

Gaze snapping over to her, Aurora straightens up, “I went to Donahue’s. Damen invited me.” The response is quick, nervous as she stares down her aunt, the very same aunt she fought with twice today.

“Rylen? I heard about that.” Harper speaks over her shoulder, crossing the kitchen to scavenge in the fridge. 

“Yeah,” Aurora shrugs, crossing her arms beneath her chest awkwardly. “There were a lot of staff there.”

Harper pulls out a water bottle and an orange, messing with them idly as she bumps the door closed with her hip, “Did you have fun?”

“I guess. It was pretty typical.”

With a nod, Harper snatches ibuprofen off a counter, stepping up to Aurora and depositing the items in her hands. She smiles softly, squeezing Aurora’s shoulder as she steps past her, before disappearing down the hall, “Take care tonight.”

Aurora blinks down at the things in her hands, somewhat surprised by the peaceful interaction. She follows a beat later, juggling the objects until she can dump them on her bed, door slammed shut behind her and bag dropped to the floor. Staring up at the ceiling, she listens to the quiet, dark apartment, and the bustling of the city outside, blocked from her by a closed curtain tonight.

A buzz sounds, an increasingly familiar buzz. Aurora jerks upward with a sigh, grabbing her bag and rifling through it until she finds her phone case. Her screen appears blurred as it lights up, and after rubbing her eyes, she opens it to the expected message.

‘Thnks agan . drunk but youre a perfct princess :DDDDFDD’

Typing slowly, carefully, Aurora crafts her response, still grinning at the virtual smile she was gifted. She smiles too much when she’s been drinking, but maybe Rylen deserves it more than most. Or maybe she’s drunker than she thought. ‘You’re a pain but the drinks were good. Thanks.’ she finally settles on.

And with that, she puts her phone on silent, plugs it in across the room, nearly collapses into her bed, and begins messily peeling her orange in little pieces. A half hour later, she’s tucking into bed, eyes fluttering shut with the image of Rylen’s loopy, relaxed smile branded on her eyelids.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if youre curious what stupid stuff im up to- [kiki-the-creator](https://kiki-the-creator.tumblr.com)


End file.
